Forsyth County Hall of Justice

GENERAL INFORMATION

Forsyth County Clerk of Court – State of North Carolina

The Clerk’s Office provides administrative support for the judicial operation of the Forsyth County Courts, which is made up of five divisions; Civil, Criminal, Estates, Bookkeeping and Special Proceedings. The Clerk’s Office is responsible for maintaining and managing access to the official Court records. In 2011, the Clerk’s office processed 2,616 Estate Cases, 2,869 Foreclosure Cases, 9,340 District and or Superior Cases and an undisclosed number of Child/Custody Cases. Case records are public record and available for general viewing, with some exceptions. The only records that are not subject to public inspection are those sealed by court order, protected by court rule or by law. The Clerk’s Office receives processes and disburses all cost, fines and restitution’s as well as manages funds which are held in trust.

Our commitment to you and the community we serve is to provide excellent customer service through a system that is easily accessible, clearly organized and constantly updated. Our goal is to provide user friendly access to the Clerk’s Office information, forms and services. We are anxious to assist you and answer your questions. However, please understand that State Law prohibits our staff from; providing any legal advise, providing instructions for completing forms, referring attorneys, or recommending specific ways to pursue legal action.

We encourage your feedback which will help us continue to improve this web site and to facilitate your interaction with the Forsyth County Clerk’s Office. Please direct your questions, comments and feedback to: Webmaster@NCFCC.us.

Parking- There is a parking deck on the corner of Liberty Street and Second Street which is directly across the street from the west entrance to the Hall of Justice. There is also parking on the corner of Main and Second Street as well as a limited amount of metered parking along Main Street which is on the east side or main entrance to the Hall of Justice.

The administration of the Clerk’s office is under the direction of Susan S. Frye, the Clerk of Court and Mary Szawara, Chief Assistant. The administration is charged with overseeing the day to day operations of the entire Clerk’s office and implementing changes to coincide with changes in the law and the needs of all persons using our office.

The bookkeeping department is located in room 217 and support is provided by Deputy Clerks and a Head Bookkeeper. This division is responsible for administering over $25 million dollars in monies that flow through the Clerk’s office each year. Bookkeeping receives, administers, invests and distributes sums of money from; (1) Minor Settlements, (2) Cash bonds, (3) Proceeds from Civil Judgments and Execution Sales, (4) Surplus funds from Foreclosure sales and (5) criminal fines, fees, restitution and cost. All monetary payments for criminal fines, cost, restitution, civil and estates filing fees as well as child support purge payments are to be paid in room 217 of the Hall of Justice.

The Civil Division has several clerks and office locations within the Hall of Justice. This division consists of various departments that maintain the court records and proceeding for Civil and Special Proceeding cases. The division assists individuals with the initial and subsequent filing of cases in the superior, district and small claims court. Various special proceeding matters are filed and heard by the clerks in the civil division including adoptions, motor vehicle liens and legitimations to name a few. Filings and inquiries for Special Proceedings/Foreclosures and Civil Filings should be made in the room 243 of the Hall of Justice.

Civil Records is located in room 245 and is where all records for both pending and disposed cases can be obtained. The clerks in this office can help provide information through the automated system and are available to assist the public with copies and the viewing of the court records.

This office is located in room 203 and maintains the court files and hearings concerning the establishment and enforcement of child support cases. The clerks in this office work with various Department of Social Services employees and the State’s Central Collection Agency in Raleigh to aid in the collection of child support.

The juvenile clerks, located on the fifth floor of the Hall of Justice are responsible for the filing and administrative duties in the juvenile courts, courtroom duties and maintaining the records for court proceedings. Most juvenile files are sealed and not available to the general public.

The clerks that handle the filing of our domestic violence (50B and 50C) cases are located on the 7th floor of the Hall of Justice in the Safe on Seven Unit. The Clerk of Court is an active partner with other court agencies that are involved with the “SAFE ON SEVEN” domestic violence unit and they can be reached by dialing (336) 779-6320.

The Jury Division is located on the fourth floor of the Hall of Justice. It is the Jury Clerk’s responsibility to issue summons to individuals for jury duty; to advise them about their service and administer the oath to the citizens of our county when selected to serve.

Located in room 600, the clerks in this office work with the various hospitals and inpatient facilities to handle issues and matters concerning mental commitments, petitions for incompetency and appointing guardians.

This is one of the largest divisions in the Clerk’s office. In 2011, there were 106,258 criminal, traffic and infraction cases filed in Forsyth County. The District Court Criminal Records division is located in room 216. It is responsible for filing and maintaining all of the criminal pleadings filed in district court. Their duties also include keying in new cases, issuing subpoenas, assisting the public with criminal record checks, rescheduling cases and preparing dockets for court.

This division is located in room 616 and is responsible for maintaining the criminal records of the District and Superior Courts. The clerks are responsible for; administrative duties of working district and superior courtroom; administering oaths to witnesses and jurors, keeping up with the exhibits in criminal trials, being in court when any criminal matter is heard and recording for the record any continuances, motions or adjudications in criminal, traffic, domestic criminal and infraction courts.

This division, located in room 268, assist with and oversees the setup and administration of a decedent’s estate. The clerks in this division are sensitive and understanding to the difficult period that many of the individuals that use our office are going through.

For a list of additional phone number(s) for other court agencies click here.

We would greatly appreciate your comments, suggestions and recommendations for informationyou would like to see added to this site. [Webmaster@ncfcc.us]